How to send money home from Japan: remittance options for SSW workers

To send money from Japan to another country, almost every legitimate remittance service requires you to present your 在留カード (zairyū kādo), your residence card. This is the plastic card issued to you when you arrive in Japan and register at the municipal office. It shows your name, residence status, period of stay, and address.

You also need a Japanese bank account to receive your wage and initiate transfers. Most SSW employers arrange this on your behalf — commonly a Japan Post Bank (ゆうちょ銀行) account or a regional bank account. Some services also allow remittance from convenience store terminals using cash, without needing a bank account transfer, but this depends on the specific service.

If you are in your first week and have not yet been to the municipal office for residence registration (住民登録), prioritize that. Your residence card becomes fully active once you complete this registration, and it is required for most financial services in Japan.

Japan Post Bank offers international wire transfers (外国送金) from its post office locations across Japan. You do not need a Japan Post Bank account to send money — you can also pay by cash at a counter. However, having a Japan Post Bank account makes the process faster because you can initiate transfers online or via ATM.

Fees: Japan Post Bank charges a flat sending fee of around ¥2,500 per transfer, plus a currency conversion margin. The total cost depends on the amount sent and the exchange rate on the day of the transfer. For a ¥50,000 transfer, expect total costs of approximately ¥3,000 to ¥4,000 including the conversion margin.

Speed: International transfers via Japan Post Bank typically arrive within 3 to 5 business days. If you need faster delivery, other options are quicker.

Practical note: Post offices in Japan are widely accessible, including in rural areas near agricultural and manufacturing workplaces. If you work outside a major city, Japan Post is often the easiest option to reach physically.

Several remittance services operate through convenience store terminals (ATMs and kiosks at 7-Eleven, FamilyMart, and Lawson). Services like 7-Bank International Money Transfer (at 7-Eleven) allow workers to send money to Vietnam using cash — no Japanese bank account required.

How it works: you register an account with the service using your residence card, set up a recipient (you provide their name and bank details in Vietnam), and then complete each transfer at the convenience store terminal by inserting cash. The receiving bank in Vietnam is typically VietinBank, BIDV, Vietcombank, or another major institution supported by the service.

Fees: Convenience store remittance services typically charge ¥500 to ¥1,000 per transfer plus a currency conversion margin. For smaller amounts (¥20,000 to ¥50,000 per transfer), this often works out cheaper than a bank wire. Some services offer promotional fee-free transfers for first-time users.

Speed: Faster than bank wire — many transfers reach the recipient's account in Vietnam within 1 to 2 business days, sometimes the same day depending on the service and cut-off times.

Online remittance platforms typically offer better exchange rates and lower total fees than banks or convenience store services, especially for larger or more frequent transfers. Services operating in Japan that support Vietnam include Wise (formerly TransferWise), SBI Remit, and Remitly.

Wise charges a small percentage fee (typically 0.5 to 1.5 percent of the amount sent) with mid-market exchange rates — meaning the rate you see on Google with no hidden markup. For a ¥100,000 transfer, the total fee is typically ¥1,000 to ¥1,500, compared to ¥3,000 to ¥5,000 at a bank. Wise requires a Japanese bank account to send from and a Vietnamese bank account for your recipient.

SBI Remit is a Japanese service specifically popular for sending money to Southeast Asia. It offers competitive rates and accepts transfers from Japan Post Bank accounts and other major Japanese bank accounts. SBI Remit has been widely used by Vietnamese workers in Japan for several years and has well-established support for Vietnamese bank recipients.

Setup note: these services require identity verification using your residence card and possibly a photo. This takes one to three days on first use. Once set up, transfers can be initiated in minutes from your phone.

Compare the total cost, not just the listed fee. Every service charges both a sending fee and a currency conversion margin. The conversion margin is the difference between the mid-market exchange rate and the rate the service offers you. A service with no sending fee but a 3 percent conversion margin costs more on a ¥100,000 transfer than one with a ¥1,000 flat fee and a 0.5 percent margin. Use comparison sites or simply calculate the VND amount your recipient would receive under each option.

Send larger amounts less frequently. Most remittance services charge per transfer — either a flat fee or a minimum percentage. If you send ¥30,000 twice a month, you pay fees twice. If you send ¥60,000 once a month, you pay fees once and often get a better rate on the larger amount. If your family situation allows, monthly remittance is usually cheaper than weekly.

Check the exchange rate against the mid-market rate. The mid-market JPY/VND exchange rate is publicly available on Google (search 'JPY to VND'). If the rate your service offers differs from this by more than 2 percent, you are paying a significant implicit fee. Online services typically keep this difference under 1 percent.

Avoid transferring on Japanese public holidays or late Friday. Bank transfers initiated on public holidays or Friday afternoons often process the following business day, which can shift your exchange rate unfavorably if rates move over the weekend.

Informal money transfer arrangements — sending money through an individual, a Vietnamese broker, or an unofficial channel in Japan — are illegal under Japan's Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act. Individuals and businesses conducting money transfers in Japan must be registered with the Financial Services Agency (金融庁). Unlicensed transfers carry legal risk for both the sender and receiver.

Common informal channel pitches include: a person collects yen from multiple workers and makes a single transfer to Vietnam, taking a cut. This arrangement seems convenient and sometimes offers a better rate — but it is illegal, unregulated, and has no recourse if the money disappears. Workers have lost significant savings to informal intermediaries who disappeared or moved amounts incorrectly.

If a co-worker, recruiter, or anyone in Japan offers to transfer money to your family for you — using a personal account rather than a registered service — refuse. The legal and financial risk is not worth the marginal fee difference.

Registered services you can verify: Japan Post Bank, 7-Bank, SBI Remit, Wise Japan, and Remitly Japan are all registered with Japan's Financial Services Agency. You can verify any service's registration status at the FSA registry.

Most Japanese employers pay wages on a fixed day each month — commonly the 25th, the last day of the month, or the 10th of the following month. You will see this 給料日 (kyūryō-bi, payday) written in your contract. Once your wage clears your account, you can transfer.

Keep a buffer before each transfer. A practical approach: receive your wage, set aside your monthly Japan living expenses, and transfer the remainder. Do not transfer everything — maintain at least ¥30,000 to ¥50,000 in Japan for unexpected expenses (medical, transportation, replacement items). Japan's medical system requires up-front payment at clinics even with insurance, with reimbursement later.

If you are building toward a specific savings goal — for example, returning to Vietnam with a fixed amount — the salary calculator on this platform lets you model how long it takes at your expected wage and remittance pattern. Factor in the remittance fees as a line item when planning.